


Chase

by quartermile



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Author hasn't seen Hunger Games so don't yell at me, Domestic Avengers, I've actually did something like this with friends before, M/M, Meet-Cute, Natasha Is a Good Bro, Theater - Freeform, Wild goose chase, matchmaker!Natasha, movie usher
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-19
Updated: 2015-04-19
Packaged: 2018-03-24 17:24:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,031
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3777094
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/quartermile/pseuds/quartermile
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>My version of what happens when Natasha tries to set her two friends, Bucky and Steve, up on a blind date. Naturally, Bucky needs to know who this person is he'll be on a date with. He didn't take into account how cute Steve would be and that he'd lose his nerve.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Chase

Being a movie usher is definitely not Steve's dream job. Listening to the same mainstream movies over and over again, shining a flashlight at people who have their phones out, cleaning up puke when a kid eats too much popcorn or candy, it's not a great time. Especially not for minimum wage. 

But hey, free Sour Patch Kids.

Tonight in particular, he'd much rather be with his friends Sam and Natasha at this new artist's gallery opening in Manhattan. But no, he's stuck at Brooklyn Cinema, stopping everyone who passes door theater eight to rip their ticket in half as they hurry to grab their seats for the newest installment of the Katniss girl's love affair with Bread Boy. 

Finally, he can close the doors and sit back in his chair, eating his Sour Patch Kids and play Candy Crush. The only thing he has to do is nod to whatever person exits the theater to pee as remember their face so he doesn't have to check their ticket. 

It's about ten minutes after doors close when his attention is caught by someone trying to sneak in. He doesn't even have to worry about placing a face - he knows that walk. The "I belong here" walk that everyone adopts when they try to sneak into a movie they didn't pay for. It's very different than the people who actually have tickets; they always stutter step and start to reach for their ticket nervously. 

But not this guy. He's coming down the hall as if he owns the place, hands tucked in the pockets of a pretentious leather jacket and head held high. 

"Excuse me, sir," Steve starts, sitting up straighter in his booth. The guy glances over at him but promptly disappears into the theater. 

Well shit. 

It's not as if Steve thinks it's a huge crime or anything, except that it's unfair to paying patrons for some to sneak in for free. Plus, he gets in trouble when his boss finds out about people who've snuck in. 

And the blatant disregard for him and the theaters rules really peeves him. 

He grabs his flashlight from under his podium, pushing open one of the double doors and going inside. 

He squints a little in the dim lighting, glancing over the back rows just to make sure the guy isn't there. That'd have made his night so much easier. But of course that means he's not. 

There's a pair of teenagers making out and another crew of teenagers sitting along the back row on the other side of the aisle. 

Steve walks along the aisles, doing the check to make sure no one has a camera out which he has to do several times during the movie anyway. 

He gets to the front of the aisles and never sees the guy he saw walk in. _Huh. That's strange._

Maybe he ducked down between the seats when he saw Steve come in. Oh well. He's really not going to search between every set of chairs. Maybe the guy exited out of the emergency door- 

There's a silhouette on the big movie screen. 

Okay, that he can not just let him get away with. 

That guy has gotten up on the stage behind the screen. 

Steve knows there's a way back there because he has to check for stragglers at closing but he's never seen anyone go back there. He didn't know anyone else knew of it. 

And did no one else notice the guy?

Steve heaves a sigh, resigning himself to his night of chasing some asshole around the dark theater. 

He moves to the fair aisle by the wall, out of everyone's way, and heads down to the screen. 

The silhouette starts to dance in the corner and he can hear a few people snickering. Well, he supposes that's better than complaints. 

Once the shadow starts to hipthrust, Steve luckily makes it to the corner. His flashlight flashes over a leather jacket before the figure takes off along the screen. A loud laughter rings out that Steve may would've thought was cute if he wasn't so annoyed. 

He chases the shadow, having to watch his step as he descends the stairs costing him a view of which direction the man goes. 

At least until he sees him disappear out of the theater doors with a loud slam. 

Shit. 

If the guy goes running around the building, he could really cause Steve to get in trouble. 

He hurries up the aisle and out of the door. Now he really doesn't know where this guy is going to go.

After standing there for a moment considering, he hears a soft humming. 

Is that...

_Mission Impossible?_

Okay. This guy is totally fucking with him. He has to be. 

He jerks his head toward the sound of the humming, mentally applauding the doctor who'd corrected his slight hearing problem back during Freshman Year. 

A dark blur darts from one side of the hallway to the other. 

The arcade. 

Steve hurries the short distance down the hallway and ducks into the arcade, shutting his flashlight off so he doesn't run the battery down. The lights are on everywhere but in the theater rooms anyway. 

It's silent now though Steve strains to hear any movement. Even though it's late enough that there are no kids playing around, the machines are still on and making chirping noises with their respective game's theme. 

He walks further in, looking behind each of the machines. 

"Hey. Whoever you are, come on. This isn't funny," Steve says, though knowing that won't help. If anything, it may spur the guy on knowing he's annoying Steve. 

"Au contraire," a surprising soft voice says suddenly and Steve whips his head around, the leather jacket clad figure darts from behind the propped-open double doors, (damn! He should have thought to look there!) humming the tune again as he escapes into the hall. 

"Fuck," Steve mutters, hurrying into the hall just in time to see him duck into another door. 

Okay. He'll just wait for him to come out, he thinks. He plops hi ass against the wall across the hall, laying his flashlight beside him and waits. 

1 minute. 

2 minutes. 

Five minutes. 

Once it starts creeping toward ten minutes, Steve realizes the guy does not intend on coming out until Steve goes in to find him. Is that what he's been doing all along? Well, in the movie room and the arcade it he did so he supposes he'd better test if it holds true a third time. 

As he stands, he realizes with a twist of his gut exactly what room he'd been standing across from. 

The reel room. 

Where the movie reel is kept and projected onto the big screen. He hasn't heard any angry yells from the theater so he assumes the guy hadn't messed it up. He seems to be just playing a game rather than interested in property destruction - maybe he's high? - but Steve knows he has to make sure. 

He pushes open the door and slips inside after glancing around the hallway. He's not supposed to be in there either, after all. 

He spots the guy sitting on the small ledge that the projector sits on behind the glass, looking out over the theater, watching the movie. 

As the door makes a quiet sound behind him, the guy turns around, spotting Steve. A brilliant smile lights up his features and he holds up a small theater tub, "Popcorn?"

"Please tell me you didn't steal that?" Steve asks lamely. 

The other boy snorts a laugh, "No. I bought it when I bought my ticket, Secret Agent Man," he teases, holding up the small orange ticket with the date stamped on it before turning back to watch the movie. 

Steve just gapes, staring at the back of the guy's head. He kind of wishes he'd turn back around. Of course he has to be hot. 

"Natasha Romanoff."

The mention of one of his closest friends and his roommate's girlfriend throws Steve so off balance, he almost feels it physically, " _What?_ "

"She's told you she was setting you up on a date right?" At Steve's nod, he continues, "That would be me."

Steve is pretty aware he looks like a fish with a blonde wig considering he's opening and closing his mouth dumbly. How do you even answer that? 

"Well she has good taste. You're hot as hell." 

Damnit Steve. _That_ isn't how you answer that. 

The guys responding laugh is contagious, making Steve crack a smile as well, "So you're Steve right? I'm getting the feeling she's told me more about this date than she's told you," he says, "I'm Bucky. Bucky Barnes." 

Steve takes the outstretched hand and shakes it, "Pleasure to meet you and yes you're right. You keep referring to the date. She didn't set it up for tonight and not tell me right? Because that'd be low, even for her." 

Bucky laughs out loud again, "No. No, it's not. That would be terrible. No. She'd told me where you worked and I came by to scope you out. Maybe ask you on a date myself instead of her setting it up." 

"And that led to a wild goose chase?"

At this, Bucky blushes visible even in the dim light from the projector, "Well, I actually got nervous and chickened out as I was walking over to you. I tried to act cool and just go into the theater but you saw me and assumed I was sneaking in and I didn't want you to see my face and remember me when we went on the date Tasha set us up on and have some kind of preconceived opinions about me so I panicked and ran in. Well, then I decided to have fun. I had no desire to see this movie. It's really dumb. Did you know that?"

"I've not actually seen it but listening to it several times a day does get old," Steve nods, trying to let his mind catch up to what's going on, "You know I could get fired if someone catches us in here, right?" 

Bucky shrugs, tossing a piece of popcorn in the air and catching it, "I can't imagine this is a fun place to work. Have a seat."

Against his better judgement, Steve does take the seat beside Bucky, trying his best to not stare over at him to get a better look at those pretty blues he'd only barely got a glimpse of in the light. 

"This isn't counting as our first date, right?" Steve blurts. 

"You mean you'd actually consider going on a date with me after our little game tonight?" Bucky asks, looking quite shocked. 

"Sure. I mean, I was annoyed for the most part but it was the most interesting night at work I've had in awhile," Steve can't help but chuckle, "On two conditions."

"Okay. What are those?" Bucky asks hesitantly. 

"One, you have to actually ask me. Two, we're not going on a date to the movies," Steve teases. 

Bucky laughs and nods, "Agreed. I'm sure you're tired of the theater. Oh, and we have to still give Tasha credit for setting us up or she'll pout."

"You have a point," Steve replies with a grin, the two of them lapsing into companionable silence as if they'd known each other for years rather than minutes, "This movie really is dumb."

Bucky snorts and shoves him lightly, "I never got the appeal of this series."

"Me neither. I mean, kids fight to death and shit? Crazy," Steve agrees. 

"So, hey, Steve?" Bucky says, "Would you go on a date with me?" 

"Oh my, this just came out of nowhere!" Steve exclaims teasingly, dodging when Bucky makes to shove him again, "Yeah Buck. I'd love to."

It just feels right to him, the easy way in which they fall together. He feels like he's known Bucky forever. It's a nice feeling. 

He hears the slight squeak of the door opening behind him and he grabs at Bucky's elbow as they both freeze, "We have to hide!"

"Yeah," Steve agrees, "Care to show me your disappearing act?"

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed! You can find me at [thewxntersxldier](http://thewxntersxldier.tumblr.com)


End file.
